What do the Galapagos, Cocos, Malpelo, Gorgona and Coiba have in common?
These areas are all connected by the same underwater
mountain chain. They occupy the same faults in the earth's crust.
And, share the same animals and geographic area. In fact, Conservation
International calls this group of magical marine parks, "The
Corridor". In Coiba, you will see the Galapagos sharks, giant
manta rays, devil rays, hammerhead sharks, whale sharks, humpback
whales, turtles, orcas and a great variety of the typical Pacific
tropical ornamental fishes, and even some you wouldn't expect. You
will even see species that don't exist anywhere else and are endimic
to Coiba only. Unlike the other areas, Coiba is full of hard and
soft corals. Even outside of the park, on the Island of Montuoso,
during the season, you will see the Galapago's seals. They vacation
here to get away from the crowds at the Galapagos...
The Coiba National Park (CNP) is situated off the Pacific Coast
of Panama in the Gulf of Chiriquí. These uninhabited islands that
make up the park have a wild and spectacular beauty. The calm waters around
these volcanic jungle-clad islands offer some of the world's best diving.
Coiba National Park is also an area of growing interest to the scientific
community, for its abundance of unique marine and terrestrial flora and
fauna that surround the second largest coral reef in the eastern pacific.
The Reefs
are the result of a happy geographical
and geological phenomena. First, Panama's Cordillera Central, which runs
from Costa Rica to the center of the country shields the Gulf of Chiriquí,
protecting it's warm waters, creating the perfect conditions
conducive to the growth of coral. Second, Coiba is bathed by Indo-Pacific
currents bringing organisms that would otherwise
be found in the South Pacific, far from Central America
CNP's marine fauna include 23 species of whales and dolphins,
including humpback,
sperm and killer whales, which habitat its waters year round according to the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. It is one of the largest marine parks in the world - 2,701 sq km - made up of Isla
Coiba and 38 smaller island including Brincanco Island, Uva Island, Canal de Afuera Island, Rancheria
Island,
Jicaron Island, and Jicarita Island.
The diving has been described as a combination of the Galapagos Islands,
Equador and the Cocos Islands, Costa Rica. However this area is virtually
virgin territory for the scuba diver.
The water temperature at the surface is in the low 80's, however
thermoclines are common at depth dropping the temperature to the
mid 70's, therefore a 3 mm wetsuit is recommended. Currents are
variable depending on the tide. A 2 to 5 meter ( 8 to 16 feet) tidal
exchange is present around the islands and can sometimes make diving
challenging. The typical visibility on average is around 15 meters
(45 feet), but ranges to well over 40 meters (120 feet) regularly.
Coiba separated from continental Panama about 12,000 to 18,000
years ago, isolating many endemic species (native animals and
plants).
There are 147 species of birds found on Coiba; one species and
20 subspecies are native to the area. The agouti of Coiba Island (Dasyprocta
coibae), a subspecies
of the howler monkey (Alouatta palliata coibensis), a subspecies
of possums (Didelphis marsupials battyi), and a subspecies
of white-tailed
deer
(Odocoileus virginianus rothchildi) are found no where
else in the world.
It is estimated that about 1450 species
of plants on the island,
(only 758 have been identified) may hold the cure for diseases like AIDS, cancer,
and diabetes.
